


to see you again

by azunshi



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fluff, M/M, Pro Volleyball Player Nishinoya Yuu, Reunions, at least im pretty sure it's a reunion but it's unexpected lol, dance instructor asahi, tanaka sorta gets them together lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 19:40:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,103
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24820978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/azunshi/pseuds/azunshi
Summary: “Asahi … san?” Nishinoya swallows, taking in the sight of his former upperclassman. It’s been a couple of years since he last saw him, that time being Asahi’s graduation. Back then, Asahi had looked older than his age, but now his features suited him. He still retains that rugged-looking yet handsome appearance with his hair tied in a low bun but his body … Asahi’s been working out.“Noya,” Asahi’s signature sweet and shy smile tugs the corners of his lips upwards; it does dangerous things to Nishinoya’s heart. “It’s … — Wow. It’s so good to see you!”where Nishinoya Yuu takes a dance class and is in for a surprise.
Relationships: Azumane Asahi/Nishinoya Yuu, Nishinoya Yuu & Tanaka Ryuunosuke
Comments: 14
Kudos: 82





	to see you again

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Tiny_Spirit](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tiny_Spirit/gifts).



> look @ me posting this instead of studying for my exam. anyway, this is _loooooong_ overdue raffle prize for tiny so i hope she, and the rest of you reading this, will enjoy this fic!

"A dance class," Nishinoya repeats, staring off into the distance, his expression in equal parts of amusement and disbelief. "Let me get this straight: you're joining a dance class because the girl you like is taking one too." At the embarrassed spluttering from Ryu's end of the line, Nishinoya has to bite his lip to stop himself from laughing aloud. One hand clutching his phone to his ear, the other comes up to cover his mouth.

It's typical of Ryu to go all out when he pursues someone romantically. Nishinoya has witnessed it countless times whenever Ryu falls head over heels. His grin grows wider when Ryu tries to explain himself, sounding very flustered. "Look, it's so that we can have a common interest!” he asserts though it does nothing to stop Nishinoya from finding this all too amusing. “Can you  _ please _ stop laughing at me, Noya?"

"No can do," replies Nishinoya cheerfully as he reaches for his cup of coffee. Savoring the bittersweet taste, he sets it down and turns to look out the cafe window. The sky is beautiful today, blue with little fluffy clouds drifting lazily by. Pale pink petals flutter in the breeze, and Nishinoya can almost smell their fragrance.

"Fine, whatever," grumbles Ryu and in Nishinoya’s mind, he can see his best friend pouting and rolling his eyes. "But you're coming with me to the class.” 

Nishinoya’s grin falters into a frown. Did he hear that right? 

“It's this Friday evening at 6pm,” continues Ryu before Nishinoya can protest. “Already booked on your behalf and paid for it so you can't back out of it.” As much as Nishinoya wishes he was joking, Ryu is right. There’s no way Nishinoya can worm his way out of this with an excuse because they both have each other’s schedules memorized.

Ryu's class ends at 3 on Friday and Nishinoya only has practice till noon the same day.

When Nishinoya finds his voice again, all he asks is, "But what’s in it for me?” Although the satisfaction of watching Ryu flail in front of his crush would repay him ten times over, Nishinoya can’t dance to save his life. The performance he did when he was in kindergarten doesn’t count and he’s certain bopping or shuffling along to music isn’t even proper dancing at all. The only limb coordination he can do is for playing volleyball but that’s about it. Dancing is totally out of his forte. He hopes Ryu had the sense not to sign them up for advanced classes or anything, even if he does want to ‘have a common interest’ with his crush.

“ _ Um _ ,” begins Ryu, dragging out the syllable before falling silent. It takes him a few seconds to come up with something and by then, Nishinoya has already knocked back the dregs of his coffee. “I’ll treat you to dinner. At the sushi restaurant that we went for your birthday last year,” he adds. 

Since that’s a fair deal (and the sushi at that restaurant is the literal best), Nishinoya agrees and they end the call. 

When he goes back home afterwards, he checks the new text he got from Ryu. It's the address of the place, as well as the time and day of the class. After copying the address he chucks it in the search engine and waits for the results to load. A bunch of results pop up but he clicks the official website of the studio. To his dismay, the studio teaches ballet, among other dance styles like hip-hop (he hoped Ryu's crush had enough sense to learn this one), contemporary dance, modern dance (isn't that the same as the previous one?), as well as a class for K-pop. Apart from the class schedules, embedded videos of classes, pictures, and completely positive reviews from previous students, there isn't anything else on the website. Not even information about the dance instructors.

Nishinoya frowns at the lack of information but he is intrigued by the place. In the end, he decides to visit the studio tomorrow after practice.

* * *

"I don't even like K-Pop," says Nishinoya as he hops out of the bus.

“You listen to Twice," Ryu points out on the other end of the line. "Twice is K-Pop, last I checked.”

Nishinoya rolls his eyes but there’s no denying that Ryu is right. “Twice is an  _ exception _ ,” he says matter-of-factly, looking both ways before crossing the road. “Besides, you know my music taste: I love rock all the way."

"Yeah, but you don't need classes to learn how to headbang or mosh, do you?” Ryu is lucky they’re talking over the phone otherwise this would’ve been a perfect excuse to punch him in the shoulder. Referring to the slightly crumpled Post-It in his hand, Nishinoya hurries along the street until he comes to a stop at the building where the studio is located. 

“I think I’m here,” says Nishinoya as he eyes the sandwich board propped up next to a stairwell between a convenience store and a print shop, which presumably leads to the studio. Written on the board in whimsical and colorful chalk handwriting is Sunset Dance Studio, along with today’s classes, special packages and their respective prices and doodles.

Part of Nishinoya wishes Ryu was here so he wouldn’t have to go up alone. He doesn’t know what to expect and what questions to ask aside from “Who are your instructors?” and “How much will I be charged if I want to hypothetically cancel a class?” But then again, it’s not like he’s doing anything wrong, right? It’s not like he’s trespassing or breaking and entering anyway. "Right," he says after a long moment. "I'll see you later for dinner then." 

“Heh, good luck!” says Ryu, and without explaining why he said something so vague and ominous, he hangs up.

When he reaches the front door, the sign on it says “Sorry, We’re Closed.” According to their website, the studio should be open at this hour. Nishinoya frowns as he peers through the glass; the lights at the reception area are on, and there's a tuxedo cat staring at him. He can also hear music from inside, muffled but loud. He gives the door a gentle push and it swings open, setting off a gentle tinkling from a bell overhead.

The cat meows at him and leaps off the reception desk as though greeting him. Smiling, Nishinoya squats and holds out his hand, letting the cat rub its head in his palm before he gives it a gentle scratch under its chin. “Good kitty,” he murmurs before standing up.

The music isn’t loud but the sultry rhythms of the song catches his attention. Intrigued, he follows the sound till he reaches a room at the end of the corridor. The door is slightly ajar, letting subtle noises like the squeaking of sneakers and footsteps on the wooden floor escape from it. A plaintive meow brings Nishinoya’s attention to his feet. The cat butts its head on his legs before slipping between them into the room. With a shrug, he nudges the door wide open and peers inside. 

A tall man is dancing along to the song, his movements fluid yet sharp. Nishinoya can’t make out distinct features of his face because of the black cap shoved low over his head. The man doesn’t notice him, nor the cat at all, focusing only on his dance and the music. He throws his head back, hand on chest as the song approaches the hook, then does a series of movements that flows well with the melody. Nishinoya takes another step in, entranced. 

The same time the beat drops to the chorus, the man does a slow body roll to the music. Nishinoya’s jaw drops as the man straightens up, does a few moves with his arms and knees before the body roll comes back. He can feel his face burning at the sight, pulse roaring in his ears. The man continues dancing, oblivious to the effect he had on Nishinoya.

He steps back hastily but misses the door by a couple of inches, banging his shoulder against the doorjamb. A curse flies out of his mouth—a bad habit of his whenever he bumps into anything or drops something—before he can stop himself. The noise snaps the man out of his trance, head swiveling around,

Perhaps it was coincidence or ill timing but the music comes to a stop when their gazes meet. Nishinoya’s mouth hangs open but nothing comes out in explanation. The man stares at him, though the rim of the cap makes it hard to tell whether he’s surprised or displeased by Nishinoya.

“Sorry, I’ll just go,” says Nishinoya hastily as he backs out hurriedly.

“Wait —“ The man’s deep voice is familiar that it stops Nishinoya from fleeing the scene. He does a slow turn on his heel in time to see the man removing his cap to reveal a face that brings a slow, sweet pang in his chest.

“Asahi … san?” Nishinoya swallows, taking in the sight of his former upperclassman. It’s been a couple of years since he last saw him, that time being Asahi’s graduation. Back then, Asahi had looked older than his age, but now his features suited him. He still retains that rugged-looking yet handsome appearance with his hair tied in a low bun but his body … Asahi’s been working out. 

With some difficulty, Nishinoya tears his eyes away from the swell of Asahi’s biceps peeking from under the short sleeves of his t-shirt to Asahi’s face..

“Noya,” Asahi’s signature sweet and shy smile tugs the corners of his lips upwards; it does dangerous things to Nishinoya’s heart. “It’s … — Wow. It’s so good to see you!” he exclaims.

“Yeah. You too,” Nishinoya manages, face flushing. Somehow, he feels embarrassed as if he’s walked into something he wasn’t supposed to see. Did Asahi really do a body roll like that and successfully killed Nishinoya in one movement?

“So, uh,” Asahi begins, not noticing Nishinoya’s funny expression as he bends down to pick up the cat purring by his feet, “congratulations on making it to the national team.” Nishinoya, among the new additions to Japan’s national team, was all over the news the other day. Of course Asahi would’ve seen that. He’d have to live under a rock to have missed all the fuss the media was making over what they claimed was the best team Japan has to offer.’

“Oh, thanks.” Nishinoya regards Asahi for a heartbeat when he frowns. “You never mentioned anything about … dancing,” he says. For someone who spent most of high school crushing on Asahi, he realizes he knows embarrassingly little about Asahi.

“Well, the topic never did come up,” Asahi says with a small, embarrassed laugh. Nishinoya watches as Asahi croons at the cat in his arms and tickles it under its chin. The sight of it is enough to bring a dull pang in his chest, reminiscent of the ones he used to experience every time Asahi so much as looked his way. Wait, does that mean he still had a crush on Asahi?

“Oh, by the way, are you here for any of the classes?” asks Asahi before Nishinoya can figure himself out. “Or are you here to check the studio out?”

“Both.” Nishinoya steps aside so Asahi can come out. “Ryu booked a class on my behalf consulting me about it.” When Asahi shoots him a curious look, he finds himself spilling his thoughts on the matter. “I have absolutely no problem with him making a fool of himself because some girl he likes is taking the class but he dragged me in. He’s lucky that he’s my best friend or otherwise — ugh, the things I do for my best friend,” he groans dramatically but there’s no resentment in it. 

Asahi laughs, a rich and pleasant sound; Nishinoya didn’t realize how much he missed hearing his voice. “I see. Well, I’m glad to hear you and Tanaka are still the best of friends. The both of you are like two peas in a pod, after all,” remarks Asahi, amused.

Nishinoya blushes at that though he immediately feels guilty since Ryu is the only high school friend he’s kept in touch with since graduation. It’s not that he planned to fall out of touch with any of his other high school friends though; besides school and/or volleyball, he felt he didn’t have many common interests with them. Hence, there weren’t many casual conversation topics he could talk about.

After putting the cat down, Asahi takes a seat at the reception, putting on a pair of horn-rimmed glasses from the drawer before firing up the computer. Nishinoya does his best to ignore the fact that Asahi looks smoking hot like that. “What class are you taking?” says Asahi, oblivious to the way Nishinoya is eyeing him. “Hip-hop?” He looks up.

Nishinoya averts his gaze hastily, cheeks burning up. “The one that’s this evening at 6pm? It’s the K-Pop one.” Saying it makes him feel like a poser; he doesn’t even like the genre that much. It’s Ryu who dragged him into this. He nearly tells Asahi about his circumstances but stops when Asahi lights up with recognition, his features as radiant as the sun’s. “Oh, that’s the one I’m teaching!” he says.

If this was a movie, this moment would be the perfect time to add the record scratch sound effect.

“You’re ... teaching?” says Nishinoya faintly, staring at Asahi with his mouth slightly agape. 

“What a coincidence, isn’t it?” Asahi turns his attention back to the computer, still smiling. 

Nishinoya is dumbstruck by his luck today. That means he can’t lie about enjoying the class, especially not to Asahi, sweet Asahi who always looks at him with that gentle and trusting brown-eyed gaze. But since Asahi is teaching, perhaps he might enjoy the class. Either way, Nishinoya is unsure whether he’s pleasantly surprised or horribly dismayed.

“Right, yeah.” Nishinoya clears his throat, taking a step back. “Sorry, I gotta go,” he says haltingly, jabbing a thumb at the door behind him. “Got some important stuff to do.”

Asahi raises his head, the smile he wore diminishing a little. “Ah, I see.” Did Nishinoya imagine it or did Asahi seem somewhat disappointed their little reunion is cut short by his lame excuse. “Well, I look forward to seeing you in class later!”

“Yeah, you too.” Nishinoya’s hand jerks awkwardly as he waves before leaving the studio.

* * *

“I thought watching  _ one _ romantic fool was enough for an evening,” says Nishinoya in a casual tone when he stops by at Ryu’s that evening on the way to the studio, “but you had to go and make it two hopeless idiots.”

He can’t believe Ryu has the audacity to “Huh?” him with wide eyes as he shoves his keys in his pocket. “What hopeless idiots?” he asks as they start down the stairs.

“You,” says Nishinoya, a step behind Ryu, jabbing his best friend’s shoulder with a finger, “and Yours Truly.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Ryu shoots him a strange look over his shoulder when they reach the bottom.

Nishinoya sighs in exasperation. “You could’ve mentioned that Asahi was the instructor for our class?”

At first, Ryu regards him with incomprehension before he puts two and two together. “Wait, like, Azumane Asahi? From Karasuno?” he asks, eyebrows shooting for his hairline. “No way. You’re kidding, right?”

“Do you honestly think I’d joke about this?”

“I can’t believe this!”

“Yeah, well, neither can I!” Nishinoya’s face grows hot as he recalls what he saw earlier. They wait at the bus stop near the convenience store. “I watched him dance to something — not sure what song it is or what group it’s by but it was so hot, Ryu.” He groans, head thrown back as he slouches. The memory of Asahi’s dance has been burned into his brain since the moment he witnessed it. “How is it humanly possible for him to dance like that?”

“With practice” answers Ryu like the little shit he is. With a glare, Nishinoya aims a kick at his shin but Ryu sidesteps out of the way. A pair of headlights appear and the bus rolls to a halt in front of them, brakes screeching. They hop on and once they find seats, Ryu picks up where the conversation stopped. “So, did you and Asahi do a little catching-up with each other?” 

Though the words form an innocent-sounding sentence, Ryu’s tone is anything but innocent. Nishinoya rolls his eyes and elbows Ryu. “Not really,” he replies and is suddenly aware of how he wished he and Asahi had talked a bit longer. “I had to go.”

”Sure,” says Ryu, apparently seeing through Nishinoya’s white lie; Nishinoya’s ears turn red with embarrassment but he stares at his friend sharply as if daring him to call him out. “Well I never took him for a dancing type,” continues Ryu, not taking the bait after all. He frowns in contemplation. “Although … we didn’t really know him outside of volleyball either.”

“True.”

“I’m kinda surprised that you didn’t know a little more than I do about him,” adds Ryu, arching his eyebrows almost accusingly at Nishinoya. “I mean  _ you _ were the one who had a humongous crush on Asahi.”

“I know,” Nishinoya groans, really wishing he’d paid more attention back in high school and actively found out what interests Asahi had outside of volleyball. His world was so small back then, revolving only around volleyball, video games and not really giving a shit about his future. 

Soon, they arrive at their stop and head over to the studio where they are greeted by a round-faced receptionist and the cat. “Last room down the corridor,” she tells them when Ryu checks them in.

The room is half-full when they enter even though class doesn’t start in ten minutes. Nishinoya notices that most of the students are females, ranging from the twenties right till thirties, though there are a handful of males. He wonders if they are really that interested in the class in general or if their enthusiasm for class has anything to do with Asahi.

“That’s her,” hisses Ryu in Nishinoya’s ear, jabbing his elbow painfully into Nishinoya’s ribs. Eyes watering, Nishinoya punches Ryu before turning to see where he was gesturing with discreet pointing of his finger. 

Ryu’s crush is pretty and tall, with long black hair tied up in a fishtail braid that reaches the middle of her back. She doesn’t give him so much as a glance as she approaches a group of friends who wave her over.

“Wonderful,” wheezes Nishinoya as he rubs his sore side. He puts his and Ryu’s bag down by the wall before joining his best friend at their chosen spot. It seems everybody sticks to their own circles, sitting in small groups together and chatting as they wait for Asahi to arrive.

Nishinoya amuses himself by watching Ryu have a silent battle with himself on whether he should get up and talk to his crush, even though she’s with her friends, or if he should wait until she moves or something. He’s about to nudge Ryu with his foot to snap him out of it when Asahi shows up. 

A hush falls over the room. Nishinoya is all too aware of his body’s physical response to Asahi’s presence. The way his heart starts beating like a hummingbird’s wings. How his eyes follow Asahi’s movements, head craning as well, the same way a sunflower moves to face the sun.

“Good evening everyone,” greets Asahi with an easy and confident smile that’s unfamiliar yet pleasantly surprising to Nishinoya. The class greets him back enthusiastically. Since he’s early, he encourages everyone to get acquainted with each other while he sets everything up.

Not once does Asahi look Nishinoya’s way yet Nishinoya finds himself both relieved and disappointed. He tells himself that he’s merely one of Asahi’s students in this class, not his friend, and that Asahi has to maintain his professionality. 

Nishinoya glances at Ryu only to find his best friend smirking in the most exasperating manner at him. Immediately, he scowls

The class starts within a couple of minutes with a light warmup session before Asahi launches into the actual dancing.

Nishinoya is embarrassed to admit that he spent more time ogling Asahi demonstrating the moves than trying it out himself, and that he can’t dance to save his life. Although he’s glad that he and Ryu are at the back corner where they won’t distract the other students, he catches Asahi glancing his way occasionally with amused twitches of his lips. 

Fuck, Asahi’s laughing at him. Nishinoya forces himself to focus on the choreography instead of the hot tinge embarrassment burning his cheeks.

At the end of the class, Ryu manages to work up the nerve to talk to his crush. Nishinoya would’ve had half the mind to be surprised that Ryu seemed very put together had he not been distracted by the way some of the students flock to Asahi for a conversation. The sight jars him as he vividly recalls Asahi being avoided by some of his peers, who were stupid enough to believe in terrible rumors about him. Though Nishinoya is glad that people are no longer afraid of him, and are noticing all the good stuff about him, he feels bitter knots twisting in his chest at the way Asahi gives his attention so freely to the vying students.

“Dude, you will not believe what happened!” exclaims Ryu when he returns, “I got a date with—Uh, Noya, you good?” The excitement in his tone diminishes as he regards a stiff-faced Nishinoya with concern.

“Yeah, I’m great!” Nishinoya forces a smile, wanting to avoid any weird questions. “I think I’m just tired.” Ryu sees through his blatant lie, from the way his eyebrows twitch together in the slightest. But he’s gracious enough not to call him out on it and instead suggests they go home.

Relieved, Nishinoya hops on the suggestion, more than happy to leave. But on his way out, he doesn’t notice the way Asahi’s eyes follow after him nor is he aware of the smile falling off Asahi’s face when he leaves. 

* * *

**Ryu:** hey noya theres another class tomorrow evening!! wanna join?  
  
**Noya:** nah i'll pass  
  
**Ryu:** hUH  
  
**Ryu:** why not??  
  
**Ryu:** ok how abt this  
  
**Ryu:** i’ll get you that new video game everyone’s talking abt on the internet  
  
**Ryu:** yknow the one where everyone is flexing their cute homes or trying to sell off their villagers or something (which i think is terrible)  
  
**Noya:**... what?  
  
**Ryu:** tthe one with the talking animals!!  
  
**Ryu:** err animal jungle or something  
  
**Noya:**.  
  
**Noya:** *animal crossing  
  
**Ryu:** oH YEAH THAT ONE!!  
  
**Noya:** as much as i’d like a free video game i think i'll have to pass  
  
**Ryu:** oAo  
  
**Noya:** sorry i’ve got stuff to take care of tomorrow  
  


Nishinoya tosses his phone aside before he can see Ryu’s texts. His phone emits a loud, almost indignant, ding. As an afterthought, he turns it on silent mode and shoves it deep in the recesses of the drawer of his nightstand so he won’t be tempted to check and feel bad when he sees Ryu’s texts.

Not that he  _ plans _ to feel bad about it, of course not! It’s perfectly fine if he doesn’t want to go to Asahi’s class again; after all, isn’t obligated to attend nor did Ryu sign him up on his behalf this time. No, Nishinoya is going to spend tomorrow evening playing video games at home, not thinking about how the feelings he used to have about Asahi are rushing back to him, about how he suddenly wishes he asked for Asahi’s number and definitely not about how he’d rather take Asahi out than be miserable at home.

But as the next day arrives, Nishinoya feels less resolute about spending a solitary evening in. Finally, after swallowing his pride, he rings up the studio and asks if there’s any empty slots for Asahi’s class.

“Sorry, we’re fully booked this evening,” says the lady over the phone, “but we do have an empty slot for the samba class, lucky you!”

_ Samba class _ , Nishinoya frowns, lips puckering slightly. “Think I’ll pass. But thank you anyway,” he says then hangs up before the person can reply. Sighing, he picks the controller off the coffee table without much enthusiasm and fires up his Playstation. He ends up playing a shooter game Ryu highly recommended the other day but he can’t bring himself to enjoy it, despite the fact that he and Ryu’s taste in video games are pretty much one and the same. 

Nishinoya gives up within five minutes, shutting the game console completely and flopping back on his couch. Eventually he dozes off but drifts in and out of sleep, jerking awake at times, when his ears register a faint noise from somewhere in the apartment. He tries to pretend he doesn’t hear it but his patience today hasn’t been its best so he ends up groaning aloud and dragging himself off the couch.

After stomping around, he locates the source of the sound from his backpack, thrown carelessly at the foot of his bed. He plunges his hand in and pulls out his phone, squinting at the screen to see that he’s getting a call from an unknown number. He always flips the silent switch and lets whoever it is realizes that they’ve called the wrong person but tonight, he clicks the Accept button.

“What?” he snaps, the impatience sharp in his tone. 

“Ah, Noya?”

Nishinoya’s annoyance quickly turns to horror upon recognizing that voice. Though the reception makes it sound grainy, its hesitant cadence is as familiar as the sunshine pooling through his window every morning. “Asahi?” he ventures, voice strained, as he sinks onto the floor cross-legged.

“Yeah, that’s me,” replies Asahi, sounding concerned now. “Sorry, did I call at a bad time?”

“Oh, no, not at all!” Nishinoya winces inwardly at how obvious his lie is. He covers the microphone of his phone, makes a self-loathing noise, before holding it near his ear again. “Sorry, I just got up from a nap and I’m … very irritable right now.”

“O-oh, okay, I’ll call another time then —”

“No!” Nishinoya bursts out. “No, it’s — it’s alright. Just —” He exhales loudly, pinching the bridge of his nose. There goes his chance of starting something with Asahi; no doubt he’s put off by Nishinoya’s rudeness. “I’m sorry, let’s start this over,” he tries again as he mentally kicks himself. “Hi, who’s this?”

The silence stretching out over the line constricts Nishinoya’s chest when Asahi says, playing along, “It’s Asahi. Azumane Asahi from … Karasuno High School.” The tentative pause in mid-sentence brings a rush of warm familiarity, lifting the irritable mood that clouded Nishinoya’s head.

“You could’ve said ‘your sexy dance instructor or something’ instead of that!”

Spluttering noises come from the other end and Nishinoya grins at the thought of Asahi going as red as a tomato. Despite the initial awkwardness, Nishinoya finds himself laughing and teasing poor Asahi over the phone; it’s almost as if they’d never grown up from high school. He guesses it’s the fact that he isn’t speaking with Asahi face to face helps, unlike the other day when he was in full exposure of post high-school and very hot Asahi in his full glory.

“How did you get my number?” he asks, once he’s done making Asahi embarrassed. 

“Ah.” Nishinoya can almost hear Asahi blushing through the phone and now wishes he could see it. “Tanaka gave it to me. Said you wanted to reconnect or something.”

Nishinoya’s smile immediately falls off. “He what?”

“Yeah. He said that you missed me … a lot, and kind of forced me to call you right after class—”

Nishinoya sighs. “Asahi-san—”

“You can call me Asahi. There’s no need to use honorifics anymore since we’re not in school anymore and … —” Asahi trails off.

“Asahi,” amends Nishinoya though speaking casually with Asahi feels something the high-school version of him would dream of. “You’re a whole adult now. You could’ve just said no if you didn’t want to—”

“I wanted to.” Asahi’s quiet tone cuts him off. Nishinoya’s mouth hangs open, his brain short circuiting from the information he received. The information that says ‘Yes, he wants to talk to you and yes, you still have a damn chance!’

“I was hoping I’d see you in class again tonight but Tanaka said you had practice or something. I missed you.” There’s nothing but plain sincerity in his words.

“Oh,” responds Nishinoya, his voice suddenly high-pitched. Clearing his throat, he takes a moment to compose himself, pushing his fingers through his hair before saying, “I missed you too.” Those three words are too simple and inadequate to describe how he truly felt. Before last week, he didn’t realize how his heart of hearts ached longingly for Asahi. Of course, it’d been painful when he didn’t see Asahi again after he graduated but he guessed he forgot how much he missed him because he threw himself into what life threw at him in hopes of erasing those feelings. Now face-to-face with them, he acknowledges them and hopes that, despite how plain his words are, the message is clear.

He’d love Asahi back in his life and him in Asahi’s.

Asahi doesn’t say anything, it feels like an eternity before he does. “So, is this the part where I ask you out for coffee?” The bashfulness in his tone hits Nishinoya with nostalgia; suddenly, he’s no longer a sad twenty-something pining for a love lost, but his sixteen year old self whose head is filled with naive hopes for a sweet romance.

“Well,” hums Nishinoya as he leans back against his bedpost, “unless you want me to ask you out for coffee.” The two of them laugh at the same time, reminding him that they still had chemistry between each other.

“No, I’m definitely asking first.”

Nishinoya arches his eyebrows but he grins. “Ooh, I like that confidence.” He hears Asahi snort from the other end of the line. 

“If it’s not too much of a rush, tomorrow afternoon? I know a great cafe near the studio with the best pastries,” says Asahi with a hopeful note.

“That sounds awesome.” Nishinoya’s cheeks hurt from smiling so much but his entire body is so warm from happiness. He doesn’t think he’s been this happy in awhile now. “Tomorrow it is then!”

**Author's Note:**

> the dance move i referred to for this fic is from the chorus of [the eve by exo](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b6ycw7p9-bE). it's been a couple of months since i discovered the song but the impact that chorus has on me ahahahahah
> 
> also when ryu said animal jungle, it's a reference to the japanese title of animal crossing (どうぶつの森) which literally translates to animal forest!
> 
> thank you so much for reading ♥  
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